Search Stone County Court Records

How to Search Stone County Court Records

No single county portal covers every Stone County case. The court level decides the path. Felony and major civil files live with the Circuit Court. The state runs an online system called Mississippi Electronic Courts, or MEC. The Stone County Circuit Clerk says every criminal and civil case from 2008 to now sits on MEC. Users pick "Stone Circuit" from the court list. Older files and missing documents are pulled by calling the clerk's office.

The state judiciary explains the network on its Mississippi Electronic Courts page. The same page routes the public into case lookup once a court is chosen.

Have a name or a cause number ready before you start. Stone County criminal forms use a cause pattern that begins with B6601. Chancery cases use a separate door. For divorce, estates, and land disputes, search the Eighth Chancery District through its Eighth Chancery MEC site. The basic circuit search runs in a few clear steps.

1. Open MEC and pick Stone Circuit from the court drop-down list.
2. Search by party name, or by the case number if you have it.
3. Open the docket report, which can show the judge assigned to the case.
4. Read the docket entries in date order to track filings and hearings.
5. Ask the Circuit Clerk for any document that is not posted online.

The fields shown to the public can shift by district and access level. The table below maps the core controls for a Stone Circuit search.

The Stone County Judicial System

Mississippi keeps two main trial courts side by side. The Circuit Court hears felonies, misdemeanor appeals, and large civil actions. The Chancery Court hears equity cases such as divorce, custody, estates, and land title. Stone County is in the Second Circuit District and the Eighth Chancery District. Both courts meet in the same courthouse in Wiggins.

The state judiciary lays out the full ladder of courts on its about the courts page. That overview helps place each Stone County court in context.

A criminal case tends to climb one chain. Lower courts open the matter, the Circuit Court tries the felony, and the high courts review it on appeal.

Case flow: Justice Court / Municipal Court › Circuit Court › Mississippi Supreme Court / Court of Appeals

The Chancery Court is not a step in that chain. It is a separate equity trial court. Divorce, custody, estates, guardianships, and land disputes start and end there, not in the Circuit Court. Stone County has no separate County Court in the official court list, so county-level cases route through Justice Court instead.

Note: Who filed the case points to the right court, since Sheriff and Highway Patrol tickets go to Justice Court while Wiggins Police cases go to Municipal Court.

Stone County Courthouse and Clerk Offices

The Stone County Courthouse anchors the county's court records. It stands at 323 East Cavers Avenue in Wiggins. Both the Circuit Court and the Chancery Court meet inside this building. The Board of Supervisors also meets there, which makes the courthouse a hub for court files, board minutes, land records, and county finance records.

The official Stone County courts page lists each court with its address, phone, and judges. It is a reliable starting point when you are not sure which office holds a file.

The lower courts sit at their own addresses. Justice Court is a short distance away, and Wiggins Municipal Court hears city cases in a separate building. The cards below give the core contact details.

Stone County Courts Compared

The fastest way to find a record is to match the case to the right court. Each court covers its own kind of case and keeps its own files. The Mississippi Bar offers a plain guide to how these courts divide the work.

Its guide to the court system explains jurisdiction in clear terms for the public.

The grid below lines up the three main record sources in Stone County so you can spot the right door at a glance.

Types of Court Records Available in Stone County

Stone County court records cover a wide span of cases. Some begin with an arrest. Others begin with a lawsuit, a death, or a marriage. The court that hears the case decides where the file lives and how you reach it.

The statewide hub for most of these files is the Mississippi Electronic Courts portal. It is the same system that holds Stone Circuit cases from 2008 forward.

The main record groups break down as follows.

• Criminal records - Felony case files held by the Circuit Court after indictment.
• Civil records - Debt, contract, and tort suits in the Circuit Court.
• Family and divorce records - Divorce, custody, and support files in the Chancery Court.
• Probate records - Estates, wills, guardianships, and conservatorships in the Chancery Court.
• Traffic records - Tickets heard in Justice Court or Wiggins Municipal Court.

Note: Charges can show up on a jail roster or in Justice Court well before any Circuit Court file opens in a felony matter.

What Stone County Court Records Show

A court record is more than a name and a charge. It tracks a case from the first filing to the final order. Stone County criminal files carry the caption "In the Circuit Court of Stone County, Mississippi" and name the State of Mississippi against the defendant. Civil files name a plaintiff against a defendant. Family and probate files name a petitioner and a respondent.

The Stone County Circuit Clerk maintains the circuit dockets, the judgment roll, and the marriage records. The Circuit Clerk website is the office that confirms what is online and what must be requested in person.

Most public files share a common set of fields. The table breaks down what each one tells you.

Note: Public copies should hide Social Security numbers, birth dates, minor names, and financial account details even when the rest of the file is open.

Public Access Laws for Stone County Court Records

Mississippi treats public records as open by default. The Public Records Act says records are available for inspection unless a law says otherwise. Court files add their own rules, since some matters are sealed, expunged, or kept from the public to protect children. A record that is not online is not always closed. It may simply need an in-person, mail, or phone request to the office that holds it.

The Mississippi Ethics Commission posts the full text of the Public Records Act for anyone to read.

A handful of statutes shape access to Stone County court records. Each one is summarized in plain terms below.

Records That Are Restricted or Confidential

Open access has limits. Some Stone County files are closed to the public to protect children, privacy, or an ongoing process. A search that comes up empty does not always mean a case never existed. It may mean the record is sealed or held back by law.

The most common restricted records fall into a few groups.

• Youth court records - Confidential under state law except as a statute or court order allows.
• Adoption files - Heard in Chancery Court but not open as general public case files.
• Mental health commitments - Treated as restricted and not listed as searchable public files.
• Sealed and expunged cases - Removed or restricted from public view once a court grants the order.
• Personal identifiers - Social Security numbers, account data, and minor names are redacted.

To view a sealed file, a person usually needs party status or a court order. Expunction starts with the court that owns the record. A felony circuit conviction goes through the Circuit Court, while a misdemeanor may go through Justice Court or Municipal Court. The Circuit Clerk points residents to an eligibility tool before they file.

Note: Do not treat juvenile cases like adult criminal files, since youth records stay confidential unless a statute or a youth court judge clears their release.

Specialty Courts in Stone County

Many Mississippi circuits run problem-solving courts for drug, veterans, or mental health cases. Research of the official Stone County pages found no separate Stone County specialty court named with its own judge, eligibility rules, or program details. No drug court page was located, so none is claimed here.

Stone County does offer related criminal pathways short of a specialty court. The Circuit Clerk's page describes a non-adjudicated probation route that may later support an expunction petition. It also explains the court-appointed attorney process for felony defendants who cannot afford counsel. Those are sentencing and counsel paths, not separate courts.

Note: Send program questions to the Circuit Clerk at 601-928-5246 or to the District Attorney, since no local specialty-court office was confirmed in official sources.

Stone County Sheriff and Jail

The Stone County Sheriff's Office keeps the peace and runs the county jail. Sheriff Todd Stewart leads the office at 1420 Industrial Park Road in Wiggins. The same address holds the Stone County Regional Correctional Facility, where Warden John Moran oversees the jail. The sheriff also keeps a jail docket that notes the warrant or mittimus for each person placed in custody.

The official Stone County website links to the sheriff, the courts, and county departments in one place. It is the gateway to the active jail roster and the sex offender registry.

The detention center posts a public roster of people in custody. A profile can show the booking number, booking date, arresting agency, charges, charge type, and bond. The full roster fields, recent bookings, and visitation details live with the Stone County inmate records page. For someone sent to state prison, the Mississippi Department of Corrections runs a separate inmate locator. Call the jail at 601-928-7042 ext. 0 for facility questions.

Note: The online roster only lists people already booked, so it is not a pre-arrest warrant search and should not be read as one.

Marriage, Divorce, and Chancery Court Records

Marriage and divorce records split between two offices in Stone County. The Circuit Clerk issues marriage licenses and holds marriage records from July 1916 to now. Divorce is a Chancery Court matter, handled by the Chancery Clerk along with estates, custody, and land cases.

The Chancery Clerk is Samuel Tom Smith, and the office sits inside the courthouse on East Cavers Avenue. Its Chancery Clerk page lists contact details and the broad duties of the office, from board minutes to land records.

Both parties must be 21 or older and appear together to apply for a license. The fee is $37, and the license is issued the same day. The official marriage license page sets the rules, and a certified marriage copy later costs $17. For full case files and how to search divorce records, see the Stone County marriage and divorce records page. A few probate terms come up often in Chancery Court.

Testator

A person who leaves a valid will at death.

Executor

The person named in a will to settle the estate.

Intestate

An estate left without a valid will.

Conservator

A person the court appoints to manage an adult's property or finances.

Stone County Court Records Fees

Fees in Stone County depend on the office and the record. Marriage fees are set by the Circuit Clerk. A certified state driver record comes from the Department of Public Safety, not the court. Many court copy and filing fees are not posted online, so the clerk can confirm a current amount by phone.

The table lists the researched fees and notes where a number was not published.

How to Interpret Stone County Court Records

Court files use shorthand that can confuse a first-time reader. A docket lists events in order, and each line marks a filing or a hearing. A charge is not the same as a conviction. A charge is what the state alleges, while a conviction is what the court finds after a plea or a trial. A disposition is the outcome that closes a charge.

A few terms show up again and again in Stone County records.

Plaintiff

The person or business that files a civil suit.

Defendant

The person sued in a civil case or charged in a criminal case.

Indictment

The grand jury charge that opens a Circuit Court felony case.

Continuance

A delay that resets a hearing or a trial to a later date.

Disposition

The final result of a charge or a case.

Bench warrant

A warrant a judge issues, often after a missed court date.

Accuracy and Record Limitations

Online court data can lag behind the courthouse. A new filing may take days to post. A felony case will not show in the Circuit Court until a grand jury indicts. The jail roster carries a clear disclaimer that the data is for information only and is not guaranteed accurate. Treat any online result as a lead, not a final word.

When a detail matters, confirm it with the office that owns the file. The Circuit Clerk handles circuit criminal and civil questions. The Chancery Clerk handles divorce, estate, and land questions. The lower courts handle traffic and city cases.

Note: Confirm names, dates, and dispositions with the originating clerk before relying on an online record for any legal, financial, or personal decision.

History of Stone County Courts

Stone County was organized on May 10, 1916. It became Mississippi's eighty-first county. The Circuit Clerk calls it the Gateway to the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Wiggins is the county seat and the only incorporated city in the county. The courthouse on East Cavers Avenue still holds Circuit Court, Chancery Court, and county board meetings.

For records users, the biggest shift came with the move online. Stone Circuit joined Mississippi Electronic Courts, and criminal and civil cases from 2008 forward now sit on the web. Before that, a phone call or a trip to the clerk was the only way in. The split between law and equity still shapes the county, with the Circuit Court on one side and the Chancery Court on the other.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I search Stone County Court records online?

Use Mississippi Electronic Courts and choose Stone Circuit for circuit criminal and civil cases from 2008 to now. Search by party name or by case number, then open the docket report. For divorce, estate, and land cases, search the Eighth Chancery District through its own MEC site. If a document is not online, the Circuit Clerk or Chancery Clerk can help.

Why can't I find a felony case in the Circuit Court?

A felony arrest does not open a Circuit Court file on its own. The Circuit Clerk says there is no circuit case until a grand jury hands down an indictment. Before that, the matter may sit with Justice Court, Municipal Court, the bonding agent, or the Sheriff's Office. Call the Circuit Clerk at 601-928-5246 once a case is indicted.

Which court handles divorce in Stone County?

Divorce is a Chancery Court matter, not a Circuit Court matter. The Chancery Clerk holds the file at the courthouse on East Cavers Avenue. Reach the office at 601-928-5266, or search the Eighth Chancery District scheduled docket by name or date. Some divorce details may be sealed or restricted.

Where do I get a Stone County marriage license?

The Circuit Clerk issues marriage licenses. Both parties must be 21 or older and appear together with proof of age. The fee is $37, and the license is issued the same day. Couples are asked to call ahead and arrive no later than 4:00 PM. The license must be returned within five days after the ceremony.

Are Stone County court records public?

Most are. The Mississippi Public Records Act treats records as open unless a law closes them. Court files add limits for youth cases, adoptions, mental health commitments, and sealed or expunged matters. Personal identifiers like Social Security numbers are redacted. A record that is not online may still be available through a request to the clerk.

How do I find someone in the Stone County jail?

The Stone County Regional Correctional Facility posts a public roster linked from the sheriff's page. A profile can show the booking date, arresting agency, charges, and bond. For someone in state prison, the Mississippi Department of Corrections runs a separate inmate locator. Call the jail at 601-928-7042 ext. 0 for facility questions.

How do I check for a Stone County warrant?

No confirmed online active-warrant list was found for Stone County. Call the Sheriff's Office at 601-928-3191 or the court that likely issued the warrant. Sheriff and Highway Patrol matters point to Justice Court, while Wiggins Police matters point to Municipal Court. If a person was booked on a warrant, the jail roster may show the related charge.